• The KillerFrogs

2018 TCU BASEBALL SEASON THREAD

TCUdirtbag

Active Member
Alumni game and first pitch banquet are Saturday, February 10.

Michael young is the speaker st the banquet, which will be at the TCU BLUU this year.
 

Purp

Active Member
Which Big 12 teams will be in the hunt for a conference title besides the frogs in 2018?
I really think Tech should be the B12 favorite. I think we have a chance to have the best staff, but our defense and offense are a huge unknown with so many new guys in the lineup. We know Tech has an excellent staff and they also have fewer unknowns in their lineup.
 

Armadillo

Full Member
I really think Tech should be the B12 favorite. I think we have a chance to have the best staff, but our defense and offense are a huge unknown with so many new guys in the lineup. We know Tech has an excellent staff and they also have fewer unknowns in their lineup.

Agreed that Tech returns a ton of talent.

I also feel we return a ton of pitching (minus the few that transferred). You're absolutely right Purp that our defense (mainly infield) and offense will be huge keys to our success.

Alot of question marks but I also think we will still be an elite program.
 

frogtex

Active Member
TCU has and elite program...that is firmly in place....whether this particular team is elite remains to be seen.

This number three ranking is wayyyyyy too high.

Tech is clearly the very best preseason team....and it’s not close
 

Purp

Active Member
Agreed that Tech returns a ton of talent.

I also feel we return a ton of pitching (minus the few that transferred). You're absolutely right Purp that our defense (mainly infield) and offense will be huge keys to our success.

Alot of question marks but I also think we will still be an elite program.
I agree. This team may end up being fantastic. We certainly have the pitching for a deep postseason run.
 

TCUdirtbag

Active Member
Which Big 12 teams will be in the hunt for a conference title besides the frogs in 2018?

I’d guess the preseason poll will be (1) Tech and (2) TCU, But it could go either way because some coaches will look at our weekend rotation and then just assume Schloss will force the rest to fall into place and others will look at all Tech returns and assume Tadlock will swing into more Ws. Kind of jumbled after that. UT, OSU and WVU are probably the next tier. And honestly we could be in that tier with them. If we grind out a Big 12 trophy or trip to Omaha, then 2018 will probably look more like 2014-2015 than 2016-2017.
 

TCUdirtbag

Active Member
Taking a look at Big 12 out of conference schedules, Texas continues to lead with the toughest scheduling in the league. Here are the highlights from each team:

BAYLOR:
- 3 at UCLA
- 1 vs A&M (neutral)
- 1 vs Cal (neutral)
- 2 (home and home) with Dallas Baptist

KANSAS:
- 2 at Florida State
- 2 (home and home) with Missouri State
- 3 at Cincinnati
- 2 (home and home) with Creighton

KANSAS STATE:
- 1 vs Indiana (neutral)
- 1 vs South Alabama (neutral)
- 1 vs Coastal Carolina (neutral)
- 3 vs College of Charleston
- 2 (home and home) with Creighton
- 2 (home and home) with Nebraska

OKLAHOMA:
- 1 vs Indiana (neutral)
- 1 vs South Alabama (neutral)
- 1 vs Coastal Carolina (neutral)
- 3 vs Alabama
- 2 (home and home) with Dallas Baptist
- 3 at UCF

OKLAHOMA STATE:
- 3 at Arizona State
- 2 (home and home) with Missouri State
- 2 (home and home) with Dallas Baptist
- 3 at Iowa

TCU:
- 3 vs Long Beach
- 1 at USC
- 1 at UCLA
- 1 vs Vanderbilt (neutral)
- 1 at Rice
- 2 (home and home) with Dallas Baptist

TEXAS:
- 3 at LSU
- 2 at Arkansas
- 3 vs Louisiana-Lafayette
- 4 vs Stanford
- 1 at A&M
- 1 vs Houston

TEXAS TECH:
- 4 vs South Alabama
- 3 at Kentucky
- 2 at Louisville
- 2 (home and home) with Dallas Baptist
- 2 at Arkansas

WEST VIRGINIA:
- 1 vs Coastal Carolina (neutral)
- 1 vs Maryland
 

ftwfrog

Active Member
Stay with me here, as this is so long-winded you would’ve thought Purp took over my computer. Let me say first that I am a homer. I have never predicted us to finish with less more than 1 loss in football or anywhere short of a national championship in baseball. So yes, I am an optimist and quite insane with purple glasses.

Second, Darn Tech. WRTMFS! And we host them for 3 at Lupton this year.

Now, baseball is such a magical sport because you cannot predict what will happen in the end. So, while we all have aspirations of winning in Omaha, you cannot predict that far out. I’ve always said, you play roughly 60 games, (Complain about playing UTRGV on a Tuesday, drive to Abiline the following Tuesday, hunker down by the radio during away games in Lawrence, and wait out snow delays in West Virginia) and it all comes down to 3 days in June (which you cannot predict). One pitch in June and you could be on your way to the promise land or sitting at home. Where would we be without Skoug’s bomb in the 8th against Missouri State? That crushed their soul and carried on to the next day. One missed pitch, one booted ball at third (thank you Boomer), or one bounced throw home that gets through the catcher (thank you Aggie) can send you to Omaha. The goal now should be getting to 40+ wins with a hope of hosting a regional. How do we get there?

A lot of folks are freaking out about the lineup. At this point in the season I’m sure everyone would rather have a well-established promising rotation, ahead of a salty lineup. And that is certainly what we have. Heck, we’ve made it to Omaha with a mediocre lineup before. Our pitching can certainly carry us towards 40 wins. Now, my thoughts (which means more questions than answers):

Scattershooting pitching: Two weekend starters return. Janczak was a stud last year (9-2; 2.31 era) & I expect Lodolo to take the leap into legendary status. We’ll miss Brian Howard (especially if we make it to postseason) but I think everyone is excited about Wymer. The dude was really good in the postseason. Just guessing he slides into the weekend rotation, and I would not be too worried with a trio of JJ/Lodolo/Wymer. I don’t follow High School recruits around the country, but who’s not to like a 6-9 lefty? I am sure I am forgetting somebody, but I predict either Russel Smith fills in the Tuesday spot or Charles King figured a few things out and starts the weekdays? Add to that our all world closer and I feel pretty good about the arms. Does Cal Coughlin move into the setup role or the Tuesday roll? He was salty as hell last year too. Our bullpen was strong last year as we went 36-2 when leading after 6. That’s unreal!

Batting: This is where I think folks are freaking out too much. First, I stated earlier that I am the type of fan to always expect the best, and that includes when we lose folks. Even last year when Baker got hurt, I curled up in the fetal position for a few hours and then told myself for the next month or so that “he is just another hitter and we’re going to be okay”. Well, we were “okay” until we got to Omaha and then we really missed him.

With the fear of sounding like I’m bashing some of the dudes that left, we aren’t exactly replacing the 1927 Yankees lineup. Stats can be misleading but in baseball I like to look at avg. (because I’m old school), slugging pct. (because it takes into account power #s) and on-base % (because I just loved Brad Pitt in Moneyball). So, let’s go around the horn (Take into account that I usually siphon down a few IPA’s before each game, so corrections done in a polite way are certainly welcome) :

(Batting Avg/ Slugging %/ On Base Percentage)
1B
- Returning: Luken Baker (.317/.528/.454) I love you Baker! The dude was on fire and we relied on him heavily before he got hurt last year. I can’t wait to watch this dude punish darn a few baseballs this spring.

2B- Need to replace: Cam Warner (.284/.384/.364) A solid batting average and on base percentage. The dude was pretty good throughout the year. Sounds like we got 2 options to attempt to fill Cam’s shoes but I expect a drop-off.

SS- Need to replace: Ryan Merrill (.243/.372/.333) Merrill was a badass in Omaha, but his offensive numbers were a bit pedestrian from the months of February-May. Someone with more baseball knowledge can dissect his .950 fielding percentage, but from what I’ve heard of Oviedo, we’ll be just fine at SS, which is what we were (or better than) last year.

3B- Need to replace: Elliot Barzilli (.242/.367/.304) Barz struggled mightily for a lot of the season, led the team in GIDP and kept finding himself moving down the order. While I loved Barzilli as a player, and his dreamy hair, he took a step back in 2017, so I don’t think it will be hard to replace his production at the plate.

C- Need to replace: Evan Skoug (.272/.544/.378) Skoug was a beast and one of my favorite frogs. Ice water in his veins. It’s hard to replace a guy that started 68 of 68 games. Zach Humphries has promise but we will be comparing catchers to Skoug for years.

OF- Need to replace: Austen Wade (.332/.486/.442) Dude was a stud last year and, along with Baker, carried us in the first half of the season. I think we’ll miss his production and Skoug’s the most. Possible Replacement: Connor Wanhannen?

OF- Need to replace: Nolan Brown (.277/.388/.369) Our far-and-away leader in stolen bases and a solid batting average, but you would love to have seen a higher OBP from a guy with such speed. NB was a bit frustrating at times, but pretty salty in center.

OF- Returning: Josh Watson (.239/.309/.370) Here’s hoping that Watson find his former self and raise his batting and slugging by 50 points each.

DH- Returning: Connor Wanhanen (.281/.341/.430) I know Luken will be DHing a lot, but Connor is returning and he had a pretty solid year last year with a .430 OBP in limited time. I feel good about CW.

Fun to look at if you are interested in last year from go frogs: 2017 stats

I guess what I’m saying is don’t freak out about the lineup. Skoug and Wade will be sorely missed, but I think when all is said and done can improve on some of the spots from last year. We have great pitching and the best motherdarning coach in the land. Hallelujah! Holy boat! Where's the tylenol ?
 

Purp

Active Member
Stay with me here, as this is so long-winded you would’ve thought Purp took over my computer. Let me say first that I am a homer. I have never predicted us to finish with less more than 1 loss in football or anywhere short of a national championship in baseball. So yes, I am an optimist and quite insane with purple glasses.

Second, Darn Tech. WRTMFS! And we host them for 3 at Lupton this year.

Now, baseball is such a magical sport because you cannot predict what will happen in the end. So, while we all have aspirations of winning in Omaha, you cannot predict that far out. I’ve always said, you play roughly 60 games, (Complain about playing UTRGV on a Tuesday, drive to Abiline the following Tuesday, hunker down by the radio during away games in Lawrence, and wait out snow delays in West Virginia) and it all comes down to 3 days in June (which you cannot predict). One pitch in June and you could be on your way to the promise land or sitting at home. Where would we be without Skoug’s bomb in the 8th against Missouri State? That crushed their soul and carried on to the next day. One missed pitch, one booted ball at third (thank you Boomer), or one bounced throw home that gets through the catcher (thank you Aggie) can send you to Omaha. The goal now should be getting to 40+ wins with a hope of hosting a regional. How do we get there?

A lot of folks are freaking out about the lineup. At this point in the season I’m sure everyone would rather have a well-established promising rotation, ahead of a salty lineup. And that is certainly what we have. Heck, we’ve made it to Omaha with a mediocre lineup before. Our pitching can certainly carry us towards 40 wins. Now, my thoughts (which means more questions than answers):

Scattershooting pitching: Two weekend starters return. Janczak was a stud last year (9-2; 2.31 era) & I expect Lodolo to take the leap into legendary status. We’ll miss Brian Howard (especially if we make it to postseason) but I think everyone is excited about Wymer. The dude was really good in the postseason. Just guessing he slides into the weekend rotation, and I would not be too worried with a trio of JJ/Lodolo/Wymer. I don’t follow High School recruits around the country, but who’s not to like a 6-9 lefty? I am sure I am forgetting somebody, but I predict either Russel Smith fills in the Tuesday spot or Charles King figured a few things out and starts the weekdays? Add to that our all world closer and I feel pretty good about the arms. Does Cal Coughlin move into the setup role or the Tuesday roll? He was salty as hell last year too. Our bullpen was strong last year as we went 36-2 when leading after 6. That’s unreal!

Batting: This is where I think folks are freaking out too much. First, I stated earlier that I am the type of fan to always expect the best, and that includes when we lose folks. Even last year when Baker got hurt, I curled up in the fetal position for a few hours and then told myself for the next month or so that “he is just another hitter and we’re going to be okay”. Well, we were “okay” until we got to Omaha and then we really missed him.

With the fear of sounding like I’m bashing some of the dudes that left, we aren’t exactly replacing the 1927 Yankees lineup. Stats can be misleading but in baseball I like to look at avg. (because I’m old school), slugging pct. (because it takes into account power #s) and on-base % (because I just loved Brad Pitt in Moneyball). So, let’s go around the horn (Take into account that I usually siphon down a few IPA’s before each game, so corrections done in a polite way are certainly welcome) :

(Batting Avg/ Slugging %/ On Base Percentage)
1B
- Returning: Luken Baker (.317/.528/.454) I love you Baker! The dude was on fire and we relied on him heavily before he got hurt last year. I can’t wait to watch this dude punish darn a few baseballs this spring.

2B- Need to replace: Cam Warner (.284/.384/.364) A solid batting average and on base percentage. The dude was pretty good throughout the year. Sounds like we got 2 options to attempt to fill Cam’s shoes but I expect a drop-off.

SS- Need to replace: Ryan Merrill (.243/.372/.333) Merrill was a badass in Omaha, but his offensive numbers were a bit pedestrian from the months of February-May. Someone with more baseball knowledge can dissect his .950 fielding percentage, but from what I’ve heard of Oviedo, we’ll be just fine at SS, which is what we were (or better than) last year.

3B- Need to replace: Elliot Barzilli (.242/.367/.304) Barz struggled mightily for a lot of the season, led the team in GIDP and kept finding himself moving down the order. While I loved Barzilli as a player, and his dreamy hair, he took a step back in 2017, so I don’t think it will be hard to replace his production at the plate.

C- Need to replace: Evan Skoug (.272/.544/.378) Skoug was a beast and one of my favorite frogs. Ice water in his veins. It’s hard to replace a guy that started 68 of 68 games. Zach Humphries has promise but we will be comparing catchers to Skoug for years.

OF- Need to replace: Austen Wade (.332/.486/.442) Dude was a stud last year and, along with Baker, carried us in the first half of the season. I think we’ll miss his production and Skoug’s the most. Possible Replacement: Connor Wanhannen?

OF- Need to replace: Nolan Brown (.277/.388/.369) Our far-and-away leader in stolen bases and a solid batting average, but you would love to have seen a higher OBP from a guy with such speed. NB was a bit frustrating at times, but pretty salty in center.

OF- Returning: Josh Watson (.239/.309/.370) Here’s hoping that Watson find his former self and raise his batting and slugging by 50 points each.

DH- Returning: Connor Wanhanen (.281/.341/.430) I know Luken will be DHing a lot, but Connor is returning and he had a pretty solid year last year with a .430 OBP in limited time. I feel good about CW.

Fun to look at if you are interested in last year from go frogs: 2017 stats

I guess what I’m saying is don’t freak out about the lineup. Skoug and Wade will be sorely missed, but I think when all is said and done can improve on some of the spots from last year. We have great pitching and the best motherdarning coach in the land. Hallelujah! Holy boat! Where's the tylenol ?
TL;DR
 

Purp

Active Member
I actually think Hump may be a net gain at catcher. We'll definitely miss Smoug's power and clutch timing, but I think Hump makes us better defensively and I think he'll hit for a better average wigh fewer Ks and more BBs. More base runners in front of Thor is never a bad thing.

I agree with you that replacing Barz's numbers at 3rd shouldn't be difficult so we shouldn't see a drop off there.

I don't think it's possible for Watson to be worse than last year so we get better there.

I'm really not worried about the other spots. I'm sure Schloss will have guys who can plug in and produce to a minimum standard. I'm just anxious to see who steps in defensively at CF and 3rd, offensively at 2nd and 3rd, and where the power comes from after Luken. I have zero concerns about the staff.
 

Pharm Frog

Full Member
Was told by a couple of people “close to the organization” that OSU has the potential to be the worst hitting team for them in a very long time. From what I saw at their final fall scrimmage, this may very well be true. A solid D1 team should score more than three earned runs on seven hits in 11 innings against a D2 team that threw 10 pitchers (the best of which sat 86 with his fastball).

Pitching didn’t look that tough either. Teel walked two and gave up three hits (including a three-run bomb) in 2 innings.
 

hometown frog

Active Member
The one piece I’d love to see just bust out this year is Watson. If you can get a high BA AND a high slugging % from him like he tried to show us his freshman year I think that gives Schloss and Coach Mo a TON of lineup options they can use to try and blend in the new pieces in the early season.

Coach Mo seemed really excited about his lineup during this morning’s coaches clinic. So maybe he knows something we don’t.
 
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